ferment
Americannoun
-
Also called organized ferment. any of a group of living organisms, as yeasts, molds, and certain bacteria, that cause fermentation.
-
Also called unorganized ferment. an enzyme.
-
agitation; unrest; excitement; commotion; tumult.
The new painters worked in a creative ferment.
The capital lived in a political ferment.
verb (used with object)
-
to act upon as a ferment.
-
to cause to undergo fermentation.
-
to inflame; foment.
to ferment prejudiced crowds to riot.
-
to cause agitation or excitement in.
Reading fermented his active imagination.
verb (used without object)
-
to be fermented; undergo fermentation.
-
to seethe with agitation or excitement.
noun
-
any agent or substance, such as a bacterium, mould, yeast, or enzyme, that causes fermentation
-
another word for fermentation
-
commotion; unrest
verb
-
to undergo or cause to undergo fermentation
-
to stir up or seethe with excitement
Other Word Forms
- fermentability noun
- fermentable adjective
- fermenter noun
- nonfermentability noun
- nonfermentable adjective
- nonfermented adjective
- nonfermenting adjective
- unfermentable adjective
- unfermented adjective
- unfermenting adjective
- well-fermented adjective
Etymology
Origin of ferment
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin fermentum “yeast” (noun), fermentāre “to cause to rise” (verb), equivalent to fer(vēre) “to boil” + -mentum -ment ( def. ); fervent
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
North Africa was by then the Bible Belt of the late Roman West, characterized by intense Christian devotion and intellectual ferment.
New clinical research now suggests that kimchi, a traditional Korean fermented food, can help strengthen immune cell function while keeping the immune system in balance.
From Science Daily
"These things are not coming out of nowhere. They are forces in American politics that have been underground for a while, but have been just kind of fermenting."
From BBC
Kimchi - sharp, funky, fermented cabbage - has become a kind of shorthand for Korean food in the UK.
From BBC
Soy sauce is traditionally made by fermenting steamed soybeans and roasted wheat, which introduces a more complex flavor profile that salt can’t achieve on its own.
From Salon
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
